Daily Gospel Reflection: Memorial of Saint Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
December 7, 2023
Memorial of Saint Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Gospel: Mt 15:29-37
Jesus said to his disciples:
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,'
will enter the Kingdom of heaven,
but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.
"Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them
will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.
The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house.
But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock.
And everyone who listens to these words of mine
but does not act on them
will be like a fool who built his house on sand.
The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house.
And it collapsed and was completely ruined."
*United States Conference of Catholic
Bishop Robert Barron
Friends, today’s Gospel challenges us to act on the Good News. On what precisely is the whole of your life built?
Your heart or soul is the center of you, the place where you are most authentically and deeply yourself. That is your point of contact with God. There you will find the energy that undergirds and informs all the other areas of your life: physical, psychological, emotional, relational, and spiritual. If you are rooted in God at the level of your heart and soul, then you will be following the intentions and commands of God, and you can withstand anything.
But this does not mean that if we follow God’s commands, the winds and floods will not come. In Jesus’ parable, both builders—the one who follows the commands of God and the one who doesn’t—experience the rain and the floods that symbolize all the trials and temptations and difficulties at the surface of your life. If at the very center of your life you are linked to God, the storms and floods will come, but they will not destroy you.
COMMENTS